The Syntopi.com

If the liberal arts don't survive, neither will our democracy. A free digital home for the western literature and philosophy.

A free, open liberal arts education in the palm of your hand. The Syntopi.com brings the Great Books project of the 20th century into the 21st with digital design and AI tutors. Browse by idea, topic, or author. Explore the Galaxy — a 3D visualization of all 102 great Ideas. Listen to passages narrated. Generate quizzes. Talk to an AI tutor about any text. Compare two thinkers' arguments side-by-side.

Don't know where to start? Try one of ten curated reading paths.

Sign in with Apple or Google to save passages, sync your library across devices, download audio for offline listening, and get notifications about new editorial essays.

Library & content

• 11,000+ public-domain passages from 64 of the greatest thinkers of the western world
• 102 great Ideas indexed
• "Galaxy of Ideas" — every Idea visually linked to other authors and ideas
• "Astrolabe" to guide you through the galaxy of ideas.

Three ways to browse

• Index — A-Z / Most Cited list of all 102 Ideas
• Galaxy — 3D nautilus-spiral visualization of every Idea
• Seminar — paired-thinker hub with suggested starting points

Reading

• Mobile-friendly passages
• Listen and download audio to any passage
• Lock-screen playback with Now Playing tile, AirPlay, Bluetooth (iOS)

AI features

• Talk to an AI Tutor about any passage
• Quiz Me — auto-generated multiple-choice quizzes
• Compare — two thinkers' arguments side-by-side
• Join the Discussion — community comments thread per passage